10 Used Postage Stamps # 12

Hello Schnattie82! I'd love to send you some beautiful US stamps - I'm sorry you've received our dreary standard postage. If you'd like a batch of wonderful and artistic US stamps, just contact me!

Dear american friends, I also don´t like your standard stamps everytime. I also don´t want US stamps anymore (teapot, Rural landscape and so on). But I can offer beautiful Japanese stamps.

How about some fun Canadian stamps? I have some great "bugs" and a lovely Gold Dragon. Nothing everyday and ordinary.

Dear postage stamps friends - the most problems are the "stamp stickers" to get the glue off the paper. The typical stamps to lick on are better to get off the envelope paper. That´s the whole reason!

Schnattie82: I agree about the adhesives on the newer US stamps. They changed it several years ago, so you have to use toxic chemicals to remove them from paper, not just water. :(

@digitalmaven What type of toxic chamicals? Where can you buy it and does it demage the stamp? Just curious. I stoped getting my US Stamps from paper. Just try to cut nicely around them. For the record the new Green stamps from the Netherlands are also inpossible to get of paper with water. Sadly it hapens more and more. Don't know why.

@Schnattie82 You are back :) Did you take a swapping break?

um yeah you don't have to use toxic chemicals to get our stamps off the paper. You can use really hot water.

MBrunt: Well, I've heard that you can use various solvents to remove them. Here's what Wikipedia says:

"Some collectors of used stamps have discovered that although not readily removable by water, the self-adhesives can be removed with Bestine (a hexane solvent), Benzine (Petroleum Ether), or a natural based citrus solvent containing d-limonene (e.g., Pure Citrus Orange is an air freshener product that works for this purpose)."

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Self-adhesive_stamp

I haven't tried these myself, but a local stamp dealer said he heard good things about the "Pure Citrus Orange" product, and that might be the safest among the ones listed.

I just leave them on paper, like you do :)

CajunLady: I've used really hot water and it hasn't worked on the newer adhesive stamps (2006-present). The older ones used to come off ok, but now that they've changed the adhesive formula, they seem permanently stuck to the paper.

I've also seen problems with newer stamps from Australia, but most other countries' adhesive stamps are easily removed in water.